The Myth of Nazareth: The Invented Town of Jesus (61 page)

41:18                                                              shard "with a short fold on the inside of its rim"

Byzantine to early Islamic                                                                No ref. given

41:19                                                              shard of "a very short cup-shaped rim." II CE–V CE                   No ref. given

41:20                                                              rim of Gaza Ware jar. Ottoman period                                            No ref. given

41:21                                                              shard of storage jar. III CE–early V CE                                            No ref. given

41:22                                                             
"probably
the neck and shoulder of a storage

jar" I CE-III CE                                                                     
Uncertain.
No ref. given

41:23                                                              rim, neck, and handle of Gaza Ware jars or jugs

Ottoman period                                                                                   No ref. given

41:25                                                             
"appears
to belong to a vessel of the early to

the late Roman period." I CE–III CE                                                No ref. given

41:26 & 27                                                    handles of storage jars
"tentatively
dated" I CE–III CE
              Uncertain.
No ref. given

41:28                                                              storage jar handle. "Early Roman to Early Byzantine"               No ref. given

41:29,30                                                        storage jar handles,
"evidently"
I CE–III CE
                  Uncertain.
No ref. given

41:32                                                              strap handle of Gaza Ware. Ottoman period                                 No ref. given

Note:
This artefact has two contradictory itemizations
.

(NVFR pp.74, 75.) See discussion.

41:34                                                              fragment of a cooking jug w/perforated strainer

Late I CE–III CE                                                                                    No ref. given

42:6                                                                "jar" [diagram shows a rectangular shard of neck]

"ca. 50 BC–AD 70"
                                                                             Vague.
No ref. given

Note:
With artefacts from Nazareth provocatively dated to 'the time of Christ' (as this shard), one expects a maximum in corroboration and authentication (reference, description, diagram, discussion). It is a surprise, then, that we here encounter one of the shortest entries in Rapuano's report. It curtly reads: "Fig. 42:6 is a jar dating to ca. 50 BC–AD 70." No typological reference is given. The reader is left to rely solely on the archaeologist's opinion regarding this shard and, presumably, also for the existence of Nazareth at the turn of the era.

42:4                                                                Deep bowl. No date provided                                                           No ref. given

42:5                                                                Closed-form bowl w/incurved rim

"probably"
I CE–IV CE                                                                       No ref. given

42:7                                                                handle with deep grooves

                                                                       
Suggested
III CE–V CE                                                                      
Uncertain.
No ref. given

42:8                                                               
"evidentlv
the body and base of

a piriform unguentarium." End I BCE–end I CE
                          
Uncertain.
No ref. given

43:3                                                                krater (or: Small bowl wlcupped rim)

End-I CE to mid-III CE                                                                        No ref. given

Note:
This artefact has two contradictory itemizations
.

(NVFR p. 77.) See discussion.

43:5                                                                Upper part of hemispherical bowl wired glaze.

Possibly
Ottoman
                                                                               Uncertain.
No ref. given

C31Ll4: I and 43:6                                       Two bowls wired glaze.
Possibly
Ottoman
                                    Uncertain.
No ref. given

43:8                                                                Interior glaze. Perhaps base of 43:5.
Possibly
Otteman
             Uncertain.
No ref. given

43:9                                                                Rim & neck of typical N. Israel storage jar

"Possibly"
Ill
CE–V CE
                                                                        Uncertain.
No ref. given

43:10                                                              Storage jar. "Parallels date II–V CE."                                                No ref. given

43: 11                                                             Storage jar w/short upright rim

"may"
date I CE to III CE
                                                                   Uncertain.
No ref. given

43: 12                                                             Shoulder of storage jar
"probably"
Byzantine
                              Uncertain.
No ref. given

43: 13                                                             Juglet,
"probably"
mid-I CE to beginning of III CE
                      Uncertain.
No ref. given

43:14                                                              rim and neck of jug orjuglet,

"probably"
late I CE through III CE
                                 Uncertain.
No ref. given

43:15                                                              rim and neck of juglet,

"possibly"
l CE to beginning II CE
                                                   Uncertain.
No ref. given

In addition, numerous undrawn and un-itemized sherds were dated by Rapuano vaguely to the "Roman period" (B21L5, L7, etc.) and "early Roman" period (C3/ L4, p. 77). He also mentions an undrawn shard (C3/L2, p. 77)
"evidently .
.. Hellenistic to Early Roman." All these un-itemized artefacts cannot be admitted into the evidentiary data base, for there is no verifiable record of their nature nor even of their existence. They are the archaeological equivalent of rumor or, in some cases, innuendo. It may be noted that Rapuanos hesitation is scarcely limited to these unnumbered shards, as we see from the frequency of the word "uncertain" above.

Diagnostic artefacts

In the following fifteen cases Rapuano offers a typological reference, almost always to the same source: D. Adan-Bayewitz,
Common Pottery in Roman Palestine
(1993, 3vols., Bar Han—referred to below as “AB”). As mentioned in the discussion, in every case the dating range furnished by AB is commensurate with a post-70 CE beginning for Nazareth.

Area                                              Fig.                                         Description                                         AB Reference and date

A1/L10                                          37:3,4                     Two everted-rim bowls                                     AB 111–119

"
evidently
both of the earlier type”
[?]            mid–I BCE to mid–II CE

(R's early dating is uncertain and unsubstantiated. These bowls are probably commensurate with the remainder of evidence from Nazareth, i.e. 70 CE+.)

A2/Ll                                             38: 1                                       Galilean bowl                                       AB Type IA

                                                                                        w/single groove on rim                                     "later I CE–III CE"

A2/Ll                                             38:2                                        Galilean bowl                                       AB Type lB

                                                                                        w/double groove on rim                                   "later I or II CE to mid-IV CE"

A3/Ll                                             39: I                        Galilean bowl w/simple rim                            AB Type IE

"mid-III CE to early V CE”

A3/Ll                                             39:2                                        Storage jar             [Ref: Meyers-Meyers-Strange 1976:220–222]

                                                                                        w/inverted-everted rim                                     "III CE to V CE"

B2/L3l                                           41:4                                        bowl w/plain rim                               AB Type IE

"mid-III CE to early V CE"

Note:
This artefact has two contradictory itemizations
.

(NVFR pp. 73, 75.) See discussion.

B2/L31                                          41:5                        "very small fragment" of bowl         `               "evidently AB Type lB"

"later I or II CE to mid- IV CE"

B2/L36                                          41:2                        "likely an everted-rim bowl"                            AB Type 3

"I CE–IV CE"

 B2/F6                                           41:7                        "Galilean bowl with two grooves" AB Type lB

"later I or II CE to mid-IV CE"

B2/L43                                          41:8                        very fragmentary edge of rim                           AB Type 1 E

"mid-III CE to early V CE"

Cl/LI                                               42: I                        Galilean bowl w/2 grooves on rim                 AB Type ID

            "late I or early II CE to mid- IV CE"

42:2                        Galilean bowl                                                       AB Type lB

"later I or II CE to mid-IV CE"

C3/L5                                             43:1                        Galilean bowl                                                       AB Type IE

"mid:-III CE to early V CE"

C3/L2                                             43:2                        Galilean bowl w/2 groves in rim                    AB Type ID